


Locked away

by whitehorsetiger



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Anal Sex, Angst, Blow Jobs, Bottom Keith (Voltron), Developing Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Magic AU, Smut, Top Lance (Voltron), locked in a tower
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-28
Updated: 2018-08-31
Packaged: 2019-07-03 18:25:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,962
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15824463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whitehorsetiger/pseuds/whitehorsetiger
Summary: “Now now Keith, are we reverting back to childish tantrums? You’re eighteen now, you should know by now how to behave,” the patronising voice of one of Keith’s guardians said, looking around at his ruined room.Keith ignored her, arms crossed as he stared at the wall.She tutted, “Giving me the silent treatment are we? I thought we’d moved past this.”No, they hadn’t moved past this, they’d never move past this. He was a prisoner here, no matter how nice she pretended to be, no matter how much she pretended to be on his side, it changed nothing.Keith has been locked away in a tower his entire life, waiting for his destined prince to come, kill the dragon and rescue him. It's a boring life of monotony and staring out of the window while wishing to explore the world. When he gets his first ever visitor in the form of the elf Lance, his entire world changes. Finally, he can hear stories of the outside world, learn what life is like outside of these four walls, explore himself and find out what he really wants.





	1. Chapter 1

“Now now Keith, are we reverting back to childish tantrums? You’re eighteen now, you should know by now how to behave,” the patronising voice of one of Keith’s guardians said, looking around at his ruined room.  
Keith ignored her, arms crossed as he stared at the wall.  
She tutted, “Giving me the silent treatment are we? I thought we’d moved past this.”  
No, they hadn’t moved past this, they’d never move past this. He was a prisoner here, no matter how nice she pretended to be, no matter how much she pretended to be on his side, it changed nothing.

With a wave of her hand, the entire room reorganised itself. Tables and chairs righted themselves, feathers flew back into pillows, the ugly-ass drapes fixed themselves and hung themselves back up. Within seconds the room was back the way it was before Keith had destroyed it, he preferred it destroyed.  
“I brought your favourite as well,” she said.  
She placed the basket she was carrying onto the newly repaired table, smiling. It creeped Keith out.  
“Now then,” she said, “That’s much better isn’t it?”  
No, no it really wasn’t.  
“We can’t have this place looking like a mess now can we? Not as The Day draws closer and closer,” she continued, “Remember you must make a good first impression.”  
Keith’ frown, somehow, became even deeper.  
“Now then, I will see you tomorrow pretty one,” she said, with that same damn creepy smile.

Keith groaned after she left, sliding down in his chair to stare up at the ceiling. It hurt like all hell, but he didn’t care. There was a slight popping sound as Shiro appeared in his human form in the centre of the room.  
“Urgh, she creeps me out,” he said, crossing his arms.  
“Imagine having to have actual contact with her,” Keith grumbled looking at him.  
“No thank you,” Shiro said with a shudder.  
Keith let out a long breath, staring into the empty fireplace.  
“Ooo,” Shiro said, “She brought my favourite.”  
“Help yourself,” Keith said, “I’m not hungry.”  
“You alright?” Shiro asked, resting a hand on Keith’s shoulder.  
“I just, I’ve had enough Shiro, enough of this tower, enough of this room,” Keith grumbled, “I’m sick of it.”  
Shiro let out a long breath, squeezing his shoulder.  
“Yeah,” he said, “To be honest, the land around your tower isn’t particularly interesting either.”

Shiro was the dragon that Keith needed ‘rescuing’ from. In truth, he was Keith’s only friend, the only person, well creature, keeping him from going completely insane. Unfortunately, neither of them had any more stories to trade. A bowl of food was shoved right in his face, waving back and forth. Keith glanced up, rolling his eyes at the stupid smile Shiro was shooting him.

****

Maybe he should get another hobby, Keith hummed as he tossed his dagger into the air, to catch it before he was impaled. Getting a hobby though, would mean having to talk to his guardians, ask them to get him some stuff. Even if he asked, there was no guarantee he would get anything, after all he wasn’t even supposed to have this dagger.

A loud roar from outside caught Keith’s attention, looked like Shiro was seeing someone off again. He could go look, but that would mean moving and there was a very interesting stain on the drapes above his bed. There was a lot of shouting, so, a group of them then. It didn’t matter though, there was apparently only one weapon that could pierce Shiro’s scales, that was in the hands of Keith’s destined prince. It was a bit of a surprise when a grappling hook hit his windowsill, pulling taught.

Today couldn’t be the day could it? Shiro couldn’t be dead? There was a loud roar and no, he wasn’t dead, why was someone climbing up his tower then? Tightening his grip on his dagger, Keith jumped off the bed. He stood beside the window, waiting for whoever it was to get up. Shiro had stopped roaring, he must’ve chased off whoever it was. Why then, was he letting this person climb the tower.

A hand grabbed the windowsill, the second following and then a body was hauled through. They were covered in a ragged-looking cape, mucky boots resting on the still before landing in the room. He waited until they’d taken a step into the room, he didn’t want to accidentally push them out of the window, before grabbing them by the front of the shirt. There was a panicked yelp as he slammed them against the wall, holding his knife to their neck.

“What the hell!?” a masculine voice said from under the hood.  
“Who are you? Why are you here? What did you do to Shiro?” Keith snarled.  
“What?” he asked, “What…the…hell?”  
Keith huffed, “Who are you?”  
“Who are you?” the person shot back.  
“I asked first and you broke into my room,” Keith replied, pushing the knife a bit harder into the man’s neck.  
“Ok, ok, geez, I’m Lance,” he said, “Please move your knife.”  
Keith moved it away slightly, he didn’t really want to cut the poor guy. Well, without a good reason too.

“What are you doing here?” he said.  
“I’m hiding,” Lance said.  
“You’re what?” Keith said, “Why?”  
“I’m hiding from some guards,” Lance sighed, “Look I’m not really supposed to be in this kingdom alright?”  
“What?” Keith asked, “Why not.”  
Lance let out a huff of breath, “Look, I’m an elf ok? If you just let me go I’ll be out of your hair.”

Keith blinked, loosening his grip slightly.  
“You’re a what?”  
“An elf dude, you never heard of an elf before?” Lance said.  
He reached up, pushing his hood away from his face and Keith had to stop his jaw dropping. My god, he was hot as all hell, not that Keith had many people to compare him too. Keith’s mind seemed to have gone completely blank, this was getting awkward, he needed to say something.  
“Your ears are strange,” Keith said.  
Idiot, why did he say that? What was wrong with him? Yes, his ears were long and pointy, but he didn’t have to say that! God, now Lance was upset, damn it, idiot.

“Elf dude, e-l-f, ears are perfectly normal, have you never seen an elf before?” Lance said, glaring.  
“No,” Keith said, “I haven’t.”  
“I suppose if you’ve grown up in this kingdom,” Lance sighed, shaking his head, “Anyway, I’ll head off in a bit, just need to wait for the dragon to chase of those guards.”  
“Wait, yeah, how did you get past Shiro?” Keith said.  
“Shiro?” Lance tilted his head to one side, “Oh, you mean the dragon? I asked if I could hide out here and he let me.”  
“Why are you hiding from the guards?”  
“I told you, I’m an elf,” Lance sighed, “Now could you please move your knife.”  
“What’s that got to do with anything?” Keith growled, pressing the dagger a little harder.  
“Did you grow up under a rock or something?” Lance snorted.  
He was awfully cocky for someone with a knife pressed up against his jugular.  
“I grew up in this tower,” Keith grumbled.  
“Wait, you’ve never left this tower?” Lance said, “You’re kidding right?”

Deciding he was an idiot, but not a threat, Keith lowered his dagger, taking a step away.  
“No,” Keith said.  
“What? How?” Lance said.  
“I’m not allowed too,” Keith said, crossing his arms.  
“Wait, wait, wait, you’re being kept a prisoner here?” Lance said, walking towards him.  
“Being kept what?”  
“Prisoner? You’re here against your will?”  
“What? I mean its boring and I do want to see the world,” Keith paused, “But I will, once I’m rescued by my prince.”  
“Right,” Lance drawled, “Because that’s definitely going to happen, they’re just going to let you go see the world.”  
Keith faltered, because that was right, he didn’t know what would happen after.  
“Whatever, the guards are probably gone now, so you can leave,” he said, huffing, “Why are you even in this kingdom if you’re not supposed to be?”

Lance began to laugh, shaking his head.  
“I’m a traveller, a little thing like that doesn’t bother me,” he shrugged, “Where’s the fun in not taking the risk!”  
“You’re crazy,” Keith said, crossing his arms, “Absolutely mad.”  
“Maybe, but this place has a lot of interesting things too see, I’m not missing out on them,” Lance shrugged.  
Keith glanced over at him, Lance was looking out of the window, probably to see if the guards had gone. Something he’d said stuck in Keith’s mind, piquing his interest.  
“What things could be worth the risk,” he asked.  
Lance looked at him, smiling, Keith was once again hit by just how hot he was.  
“Oh, you wouldn’t believe, there’s this waterfall that looks like diamonds,” he said, walking over.

****

Keith wasn’t sure how long they were sat there, then again time never really mattered in his tower. He could listen to Lance talk for hours, as it turned out, there was a lot Keith didn’t know about. He’s pretty sure Lance was exaggerating some of his stories, they sounded too fantastical to be true. He didn’t care though, it was the most interesting thing that had happened to him…ever.

Suddenly a large black muzzle appeared at the window, rumbling lightly.  
“You should go,” Keith said, standing up, “My guardians will be coming soon and you don’t want to be here when they arrive.”  
Lance nodded, “Alright then.”  
He stood up, walking over to the window.  
“Lance,” Keith called, the other man turned, “Could you, come back again? I’d really like to hear the end of that story.”  
Lance smiled at him, “Of course, I don’t mind, maybe I’ll bring my friends around at some point.”  
Meeting more people, the thought made nerves bubble in his stomach. It would liven up his boring days though.  
“Alright, that could be good, just, don’t come at sunset,” Keith said, “That’s when my guardians arrive.”  
“Ok,” Lance smiled, “I’ll see you.”  
“Yeah, see you,” Keith said, watching as he hopped out the window.

He watched out of the window as the other man wandered around the tower a bit, calling something out. Suddenly a white horse appeared out of the forest, the two greeted each other and Keith couldn’t help the soft smile appearing on his face. Lance mounted the horse, riding off into the forest, Keith hoped he would be back. Glancing up, Keith took notice of Shiro laid a short distance away. How the hell a dragon could give him a smug smile, Keith didn’t know, but Shiro managed it.  
“Shut up!” he yelled, Shiro’s smile got smugger.  
Keith sighed, crossing his arms and glowering.  
“Fine, thanks for letting him past.”  
Shiro shrugged, before laying back down. Keith rolled his eyes, making his way back over to his bed.

****

Keith didn’t want to talk to her, he didn’t, but he had to know.  
“What will happen? After I’m rescued,” Keith was surprised he managed to keep the irritation out of his voice.  
“Oh? Finally taking interest in your destiny are we?” she said, “Good, good. Well, you’ll be taken to the palace where the two of you will be married and live together there for the rest of your days.”  
Keith blinked, staring back at his hands. So, it looked like he’d be going from being a prisoner in this tower, to a prisoner in a palace. Great, this was just fantastic.


	2. Chapter 2

Keith needed answers, he needed to know what these feelings were and what he should do about them. They only seemed to appear whenever Lance was around, or he thought about him. He could’ve sworn he’d read about something like this before. Diving under his bed, Keith tugged up the loose floorboard, pulling out the books Shiro had smuggled out of the village for him. He hadn’t read any of them in years, it was getting riskier and riskier to do so, he didn’t need his secret stash to be found.

No wonder he’d thought he’d read about it, they were romantic feelings and most of the books were romantic ones. He’d had a soft spot for them when he was younger and re-reding them now, it seems things hadn’t changed. Now though, when he read them, he wasn’t just picturing himself with some faceless man with the title ‘destined prince’. He was picturing himself doing those things with Lance, kissing, cuddling….more.

Keith slammed the book shut, face bright red. Ok, wow. Burying his face in his hands, Keith groaned. Great, how was he supposed to face Lance now with those mental pictures. Jumping off the bed, Keith returned the books to under the floorboard. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea, he shouldn’t be picturing Lance that way, he was supposed to be with someone else.

****

Lance was talking, but Keith wasn’t paying attention. He couldn’t get the image of him and Lance out of his head, couldn’t help but wonder what those lips would feel like against his skin, against his lips, against…ok…lets not go there.  
“Keith? Keith? Are you alright?” Lance said, waving his hand in front of Keith’s face.  
“Yes, sorry, I was just thinking,” Keith said, slapping Lance’s hand away.  
“Careful,” Lance smiled.  
Keith snorted, punching him in the arm.  
“Shut up.”  
Lance laughed, rubbing his shoulder. Keith felt himself flush, turning away.

He shouldn’t be feeling this way, he really really shouldn’t. Then again, when had he ever done anything they’d wanted. Why shouldn’t he do this, experience something like this before being a prisoner in a palace. Ignoring the fact he was supposed to feel like this for his prince too, Keith lent forwards, pressing their lips together.

Lance seemed to freeze and Keith had no idea what he was doing, so it didn’t feel that great. Lance pulled away suddenly, Keith felt his cheeks go red.  
“I’m sorry,” Keith said, “I’m sorry.”  
“You should save that for your prince,” Lance said.  
“What if I don’t want to,” Keith mumbled, “What if I want to do this here now, what if I don’t care about some random guy I don’t even know.”  
Lance blinked, Keith was still lent over towards him, looking right in his eyes.  
“Are you sure?” Lance asked.  
Keith nodded, “This is what I want.”  
He’d think about the consequences later, or not.   
“Screw the consequences,” Keith said softly, before pressing their lips together.  
This seemed to have been the wrong thing to say, as Lance was laughing while they were kissing, so their second kiss was about as good as their first.

“Lance,” Keith groaned, pulling away.  
“Sorry,” Lance shook his head, grinning.  
This time, when Lance pressed their lips together, he tilted his head so they slotted together. A hand rested on Keith’s cheek and he moved his lips in a gentle rhythm Keith tried to mimic. Their third kiss was much, much better.

****

This became their new thing, talking, laughing, kissing. Shirts were shed and Keith got to know all of Lance’s scars, pressing a kiss to each and every one. Shiro knew full well what they were doing, he didn’t exactly approve, but didn’t exactly stop them. Although, he had a feeling Shiro was more upset by his choice to ignore the consequences.

Keith moaned lightly as he ground down onto Lance’s thigh, breaking the kiss to turn his head too one side. Lance hummed, pressing kisses down Keith’s neck, sucking a mark onto his collarbone where it wouldn’t be seen.   
“Lance,” Keith gasped, “Yes, Lance.”  
Lance rolled his hips down, grinding their clothed cocks together. Keith gripped Lance’s shirt, gasping as pleasure ignited in his veins. A sudden image in his head, of one of those scenes in his book. Keith traced his hand down Lance’s chest, further and further until he reached his hip. Lance made a slightly surprised noise, pulling away a little.  
“Sorry,” Keith said, moving his hand.  
“No, no,” Lance said, glancing away, “It’s ok, you just surprised me.”  
Keith hummed, running his fingers just above the waistband of Lance’s bottoms. Lance shivered, a slight moan slipping out of his throat.   
“Can I?” Keith said, slipping his fingers down.  
“Err…” Lance said, eyes wide, “Yes, sure, yeah.”

Keith smiled, sitting up slightly. Reaching down, he began to pull them down Lance’s hips. Lance made a slightly surprised noise at Keith’s enthusiasm, helping him tug them down and kick them off. Without that barrier, Keith could see the outline of Lance’s hard cock in his boxers. Sinking his teeth into his lip, Keith reached for this last layer of clothing. Lance was incredibly tense, he was even shaking slightly.  
“Is this alright?” Keith asked, “You’re really tense, I thought you’d done this before?”  
“I have,” Lance mumbled softly, “I’m just, sorry, I’m just nervous.”  
Keith tilted his head to one side.  
“Why? It’s just me?” he said, “If you’re bad I won’t know.”  
Lance groaned, burying his face in his hands, but Keith saw the smile he was trying to hide. Leaning forwards, pressing kisses all over Lance’s face.  
“Ass,” Lance laughed.

Keith’s hands went back to Lance’s boxers, now he seemed to have relaxed. Tugging them down, Keith couldn’t help but stare at the new skin exposed to him. Oh wow, Lance was stunning and Keith was staring. Yep, ok, that was Lance’s dick, that was Lance’s dick and he wanted to touch it. Reaching out, Keith brushed his fingers delicately against it. Lance hissed, hips jolting slightly.  
“Sorry, sorry,” Keith said, withdrawing his hands.  
“Keith,” Lance hissed, “Touch me.”

This wasn’t exactly what Keith thought would happen today, with Lance naked in his bed, his dick in Keith’s hand. Lance was panting, head tilting back as he moaned lightly. Keith didn’t know where to look, his hand on Lance’s dick or the pleasure written across Lance’s face. His eyes kept darting between the two, never settling in one place for more than a few seconds. Eventually, Lance moaned loudly, tossing his head back as he came. Keith stared at his face, watching it twist in pleasure.

They sat for a few minutes, simply breathing each other in. Keith was trying to ignore his rock-hard cock, trying to only pay attention to Lance, god he was beautiful. Lance seemed to come back to himself, eyes fluttering open to meet Keith’s. He smiled, reaching out to brush Keith’s hair away from his face.  
“Come on then,” Lance smiled, “Lay down, I’ll take care of you.”

Keith’s face flushed bright red as he lay, naked, on the bed. Lance was peppering the inside of his thighs with kisses, a strange mixture of pleasurable and ticklish. It took all of Keith’s willpower to not close his legs, not to squish Lance between his thighs. He failed when Lance bit in the juncture of his thigh, causing Keith to yelp and snap his lags closed. Lance laughed, puffing air over the sensitive skin.  
“I can’t do anything trapped like this,” Lance laughed slightly.   
Keith flushed, spreading his legs so Lance could move again. The elf chuckled, moving up to blow a puff of air over Keith’s cock. Keith would never admit the slight squeaking noise he made, or the bitten of scream when it was engulfed in the heat of Lance’s mouth.

It was embarrassingly quick and Keith came before he could utter a warning. Lance pulled back, coughing and sputtering slightly.  
“Oh god Lance,” Keith said in a rush, “I’m sorry.”  
“It’s all right, just warn me next time.”  
Keith flushed, but he couldn’t help but fixate on, next time.

***

Keith smiled brightly as he waved Lance off, laughing as he tried to spin around on the back of his horse.  
“Did you know dragons have really good hearing,” Shiro said, appearing behind him, “So please warn me net time you two decide to get…amorous.”  
Keith felt his face heat up, “Oh god.”  
“You know those woods are a bit scary as a person, I may have to go into the village next time,” Shiro said.  
Keith turned around to look at Shiro, who had his eyebrow raised. He opened his mouth to defend his actions, not that he really had a defence ready, but Shiro held up his hand.  
“I’m not going to get involved ok, this is your decision and this is probably the happiest I’ve seen you, ever. You just need to remember, this is temporary, don’t let your heart get broken because you forget that,” he said, moving to rest his hand on Keith’s shoulder.  
“I’ve not, I know all that,” Keith grumbled, “I’m just, happy having Lance while I can.”  
“Alright,” Shiro smiled, “Just, be careful, ok?”  
“Yeah, yeah, ok,” Keith said.

The thought of this thing with Lance only being temporary made a painful jolt travel through his chest, but Keith didn’t care. He would deal with that when he got to it, for now, he was going to enjoy Lance’s company, no matter how temporary it was going to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you know in the original fairytale, the witch found out Rapunzel had been seeing the prince because she ended up pregnant and her clothes got too tight...that has very little to do with this just thought it was an interesting fact...
> 
> Anyway, this is a bit of filler ready to head into a bit more action next chapter...yes I will be trying to update this every day, I can't promise that will happen but I will try.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed, comments and kudos are always appreciated and thank you for the kind comments on the first chapter!


	3. Chapter Three

Keith moaned, long and low as Lance thrust into him, arms giving out so he face-planted into the bed.  
“Oops,” Lance said softly, “You all right?”  
Keith moaned again, nodding.  
“You can move,” he said, voice muffled by the pillows.   
Lance seemed to have heard him though, starting up a steady but strong rhythm. Burying his face into the pillow, Keith shuddered. Lance was warm, warm along his back, warm inside him and it felt so, so good.

Keith cried out as Lance struck his prostate, now he’d found it, Lance easily struck it on every thrust. Keith was a whimpering, wining mess in seconds, legs threatening to give out. Keith muffled his shouts and moans in the pillow in front of him, it felt so good. He wanted Lance to mark him, suck bruises over his shoulders and bite down on the sensitive skin. They’d had to stop with the marks though, Keith’s guardians were becoming more and more protective and annoying as That Day grew closer and closer.

Lance barely had to brush Keith’s dick before he was screaming as he came, shaking and clenching down. Lance moaned deeply in his ear, increasing the speed of his thrusts. Keith jerked with oversensitivity as he came down from his high, intentionally squeezing Lance’s dick to try and get him to cum faster. It didn’t take much longer after that.

****

Keith felt a hum rumble through Lance’s chest, snuggling closer and letting out a long, pleased breath. Lance was massaging the base of his spine, arm curled around him. Keith loved this, these peaceful moments between them having sex and Lance having to leave.

“Tell me about your family,” Lance said softly, using his other hand to push Keith’s hair out of his face.  
“My…family,” Keith hesitated, hanging his head.  
“Yeah, I mean, I’ve told you all about mine,” Lance shrugged.  
Keith let out a long breath, he tried to avoid talking about his situation, Lance had just given up asking after a while. Well, a mixture of avoidance and Keith not really knowing very much.  
“It’s just me and my guardians,” Keith said softly.  
“What about your parents?” Lance tilted his head to one side, “Surely they know you’re here?”  
“If they do, they don’t care,” Keith said, rolling out of Lance’s arms to face asway from him, “They never visit, or even made me aware of their existence.”  
“Oh,” Lance said softly, “Keith, I’m sorry.”  
“It doesn’t matter,” Keith grumbled, “Forget it.”  
“Keith…”  
“I said forget it!” Keith snapped.  
Squeezing his eyes closed, Keith regretted his outburst almost immediately. He heard Lance let out a long breath, before snuggling up to his back.  
“Sorry,” Lance murmured softly.  
Reaching back, Keith tugged Lance’s arm over his hip, snuggling back into him.

Keith was just starting to doze off when Lance pressed a kiss to his shoulder, moving away to roll out of bed. Rolling over, Keith made a soft protesting noise.  
“I thought you were asleep,” Lance said softly, “I’ve got to go.”  
Keith knew this, he knew Lance had to go, he just really wished he didn’t. Holding open his arms, Keith pulled Lance in for one last kiss.  
“I’ll see you later,” he murmured against the other man’s lips.  
“See you,” Lance smiled.

****

“I have a present for you,” the current visiting guardian said brightly, placing a package on the table, “Go ahead, open it up.”  
It was probably nothing to be excited about, but Keith’s curiosity got the better of him. Opening up the paper, Keith stared down at the elaborate carved jewellery and new silky clothes.  
“Go on then, put them on,” she smiled, showing off far too many teeth.  
Keith was very glad he’d stopped Lance from marking up his neck and thighs as he stripped down, she just seemed to stare at him. The silk clothes she’d given him were very revealing and really thin too, coupled with the jewellery and Keith almost couldn’t recognise himself in the mirror, he hated it.  
“Don’t you look lovely!” she chirruped, “Just perfect, all ready for your prince.”  
He looked like a doll, covered in expensive clothing, skin pale and flawless. Keith’s head whipped around as he spotted his clothes floating out of the corner of his eye.  
“What are you doing?”  
“Well, now you have these, you won’t be needing these rags anymore,” she smiled.  
Keith watched in horror as his clothes turned to ash right in front of his face.  
“That’s better isn’t it,” she smiled.  
The circlet Keith had left on the table suddenly floated up, coming to rest on his head.  
“Perfect.”

****

Lance probably wouldn’t mind if Keith waited for him naked, in fact he would probably appreciate it. But Shiro could visit at any time and neither of them needed that in their lives, so Keith tolerated the clothes that exposed most of his chest and legs. Shiro had tried to convince him it wasn’t that bad, Keith glowered until he conceded that to him it was.

“You do realise glaring at the window won’t make him come any faster,” Shiro said, leaning lazily against Keith’s chair.  
“Don’t you have a tower to protect?” Keith grumbled.  
“I’ll hear if anyone comes,” Shiro shrugged, “I can pick you something up in the village if you really hate them that much.”  
“It’s fine,” Keith sighed, “They’ll probably catch me and then that’s the whole thing blown.”  
Shiro patted him on the shoulder, “You never know, maybe you’ll like them some day.”  
“Don’t hold your breath,” Keith grumbled.  
“Well, you’ll know what Lance thinks soon enough,” Shiro said, patting Keith’s shoulder.  
Barely a second later there was a clank as a grappling hook hit the windowsill.

Lance’s jaw hit the floor the second he looked at Keith, there might have even been a bit of drool.  
“I’ll leave you two alone,” Shiro chuckled, vanishing to take dragon form outside the tower.  
“Wow,” Lance hissed.  
“My guardians decided I needed to look good for when my prince came, they burned all my other clothes,” Keith grumbled, “Urgh, I hate them.”  
“Oh, yeah, of course,” Lance mumbled, scratching the back of his neck.  
Keith faltered, biting his lip as he realised his mistake. Mentioning his ‘destined prince’ in front of Lance was a terrible idea. It’s ok, he could save this. With a sway in his hips, Keith made his way over.  
“You know where this outfit would look best?” he said.  
Lance shook his head slightly.  
“On my floor.”  
Lance snorted, then laughed.  
“Well, I can’t argue with that.”

****

 

Lance didn’t even bother laying with Keith afterwards, getting up immediately to start pulling his clothes on. Keith paused, staring at him, trying to ignore the pain in his chest.  
“Can’t you stay a little longer, they’re not due back until tonight,” he said, pulling on a robe.  
“No, sorry,” Lance smiled sadly, “I need to get moving.”  
“Oh, ok,” Keith said, trying not to sound disappointed, “I’ll see you tomorrow then.”  
“No Keith, you won’t,” Lance said looking back out of the window, “I’m not coming back, I’m leaving this area, for good.”  
Something solid sunk into Keith’s stomach, “What?”  
“I’m a traveller Keith, you know that. I’m moving on,” Lance said, voice void of emotion, “We both knew this day would come, we both knew it was only temporary. You have your destined prince and I have the open road.”  
Keith’s eyes began to burn, he didn’t want Lance to go, it couldn’t end like this.   
“Lance, please,” he chocked out.

Lance turned, a strained smile on his face but the pain in his eyes betraying him.  
“Keith, I can’t stay here and watch you run off with another man, or return to find you gone,” he said, “I love you, I can’t do that.”  
Keith stared, tears starting to track down his face.  
“Come back tomorrow, please, I want to say goodbye properly.”  
Lance stared at him and Keith had a horrible second when he thought Lance was going to say no.   
“Ok,” he nodded, “I’ll come back tomorrow.”  
Then, with a parting kiss, he was gone. 

Keith watched him ride away, horse vanishing over the horizon. There was a slight rumble and ripple in the air and Shiro was stood behind him in human form.  
“Lance is leaving,” Keith said, “He’s leaving forever.”  
“Oh Keith,” Shiro said, resting his hand on Keith’s shoulder.  
Keith stood there, staring at the horizon, pain in his chest. Lance was right, this whatever they had was only supposed to be temporary, a distraction before Keith’s one true love came to whisk him away. But Lance had also said he loved him and Keith was pretty sure he loved him back, he couldn’t just let that go.  
“What am I doing?” Keith grumbled to himself.  
Why was he staying here, waiting for someone to come, kill his brother and take him away. Someone who would take him away from the man he loved, take him to live as a prise in the palace. He would never be happy like that. Turning around, he marched past Shiro into his room, pulling a bag out of his wardrobe.  
“Keith?” Shiro asked.  
“I’m running away,” Keith said, “Screw destiny, screw fate, I’m running away with Lance to see the world.”

****

Keith tried not to let his excitement show when one of his guardians visited, the last thing he needed for her to work out what he was going to do. She was humming lightly, a big creepy smile on her face. Keith tried not to shudder, keeping his arms crossed over his chest.

“Now then,” she said, turning to him.  
Keith tensed slightly, there was something a bit off about her expression. Suddenly, she swung her hand out. Keith yelped as his wrists and ankles were bound, causing him to fall to the ground.  
“What the hell?!” Keith shouted.  
“You’ve been misbehaving haven’t you,” she said, smiled growing even toothier, “Seeing that travelling elf, thought I wouldn’t find out?”  
She stepped towards him, growling slightly.   
“We worked our hardest to keep you safe, to keep you pure and this is how you repay us?” she said, “Running away from us? Running off with some filthy elf?”  
Keith edged backwards, back hitting his bed. Did she know about the loose floorboard, the knife under there.  
“No, we have worked too hard, for too long for this to fail now,” she growled, “I will deal with this…elf, then, then you will be rescued and taken to the palace, watched so you can never misbehave again.”  
She was right in his face, so Keith did the one thing he could do, spat right in her face.  
“You will regret your misbehaviour,” she said, waving her hand.  
A piece of cloth flew over his mouth, gagging him.  
“Now, we’ll just wait for your,” she sneered, “friend.”

As the night passed, Keith lent backwards, fumbling with the loose floorboard. Finally he managed to hook his fingers under it, opening it, he fumbled around. Nothing seemed to have chained, she didn’t know it was there. Fumbling around for a second, Keith managed to grasp the hilt of his knife. He then began the arduous task of cutting his hands free from the thick rope.

It was tricky, he fumbled a couple of times, but he was so close. Just as the sun started to come up, there was the sound of a grappling hook hitting the windowsill. Keith’s eyes widened, he tried to shout out a warning past the gag. No luck, Keith doubled his effort to cut himself free.  
“Looks like we’ve got a visitor,” she purred, stepping back into the shadows.  
A hand appeared on the sill, then the other, then Lance’s head as he hauled himself up.  
“Keith? You here?” he asked, pulling himself through, “Am I here too early for you?”

The rope around his wrists snapped. Swinging one hand down with his knife to cut the thinner rope around his ankles, the other he reached for the gag. Too late. His guardian moved out of the shadows, giving Lance a sharp shove. Keith swore everything slowed down, he shouted out as he pulled the gag away, the ropes around his ankles were cut, Lance teetered dangerously on the edge. Shouting, Keith sprinted forwards. He swing his knife at his guardian, causing her to teleport away, Lance overbalanced and began to fall. Reaching out, Keith grabbed his shirt, hauling Lance back in through the window.

“Oh thank god,” Keith said, wrapping his arms around Lance, “Thank god.”  
“Keith, what?” Lance started, but Keith hauled him too his feet.  
“I’m running away with you, she worked out what was happening and tried to kill you, we need to go, now,” Keith said, all in a rush.  
“You’re not going anywhere!” she howled, lunging towards them.   
Lance grabbed him tightly, rolling the two of them out of the way of her flailing nails.  
“Come on!” Lance shouted.  
They sprinted around the room, dodging magic and furious swipes. Keith realised what Lance was doing, guiding her away from the window so they could sprint towards it.   
“We won’t have time to climb down,” Keith said.  
“I have an idea, yell for Shiro,” Lance replied as they made a break for the window.  
“SHIRO!” Keith shouted as the two of them jumped out of the window.

Shiro’s head was anything but soft, lucky he’d held it so close to the window. Keith clung to Lance, pressing a soft kiss to the side of his face.   
“Thank god,” he said, “Alright Shiro let’s go.”  
There was a laugh, something cold high and unnatural. Shiro stiffened, before suddenly dropping his head causing them to both fall off.  
“Shiro, what…” Keith’s eyes widened in horror.  
Shiro’s eyes were glowing solid yellow, teeth bared in a snarl.  
“How do you think I knew about your little secret,” his guardian laughed, “He’s been our little puppet for years, after we found evidence of your…activities…we’ve been using him to spy on you. Now, kill the elf!”  
With a loud roar, Shiro lundged.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I...don't have much to say about this chapter so yeah...


	4. Chapter 4

Keith felt himself getting shoved, Lance throwing himself in the opposite direction. Shiro’s jaw snapped down in the air they’d just occupied. He growled, turning towards Lance and opening his jaw.  
“Lance! Run!” Keith shouted.  
Lance probably didn’t need him to shout that, but Keith couldn’t really do anything else to help. Shiro was snapping and lunging at Lance as the elf tried to escape, dodging around the crumbling stone walls and trees. Keith sprinted after them, hating how restrictive his clothes were.  
“Shiro! Shiro! Stop!” he shouted.

Shiro ignored him, swiping at Lance with his claw. He knocked several trees down, causing Lance to yelp as he was almost crushed by the falling trees. Keith yelled, trying to get Shiro’s attention on him rather than Lance. It was completely hopeless, Shiro’s entire attention was on his task. Luckily Lance was quick on his feet, but he wouldn’t be able to keep this up forever.

There was the satisfying sound of cloth ripping, suddenly Keith could move more freely. The guardian was laughing, a high cold sound that sent a shiver down his spine.   
“Shiro stop!” Keith shouted, “Leave him alone.”  
He reached Shiro’s tail, ducking as it swung right at him. There was no way of defeating him, they didn’t have weapons that were strong enough to pierce his hide. Even if they did, Keith didn’t want to hurt him, he couldn’t hurt him. He needed an idea, a better idea than the one he just came up with. It a terrible idea, Keith would probably regret doing it, this was so stupid, he was going to do it.

He began to climb up Shiro’s tail, his thick scales meaning he couldn’t feel Keith climb him. Luckily Shiro’s back was broad, so Keith could balance while he was moving around. He almost fell as he heard Lance cry out in pain, Shiro’s claws just skimming his side. Keith broke into a sprint, stumbling slightly on the rough scales. He didn’t have time to fall over, Shiro was inches away from killing Lance. Using the spines running down Shiro’s back, Keith clambered up his neck all the way to his head.

“Shiro! No!” Keith shouted, slipping down his head slightly, trying to look Shiro right in the eyes.  
He really didn’t think this through. Shiro roared, snapping his jaw and tossing his head. Keith had predicted this, launching himself up Shiro’s head to grab his horn. He didn’t know if he could get through to Shiro, but at the very least, he could distract him enough for Lance to escape.  
“Lance! Go!” Keith shouted.  
“What?!” Lance shouted back.  
“Go! Get out of here!”  
“I’m not leaving you!”  
“It’s you he’s after, not me, get away while I distract him!” Keith shouted.  
“No Keith, I’m not leaving you, I’m not letting you be a prisoner anymore, you said you wanted to run away with me, then run away with me,” Lance called back.  
“You’re an idiot,” Keith said softly.  
Shiro flicked his head up and roared. Pain rocketed down Keith’s shoulder and face as Shiro swung at him, claws catching his skin. Keith yelled out, unintentionally letting go. He fell, sliding off his perch to the ground. He hit it, hard, knocking all the breath straight out of him. Shiro’s head whipped around, teeth right up against Keith’s face.  
“No!” the guardian yelled, “Leave him.”

Shiro turned back to Lance, swinging his tail. This time, Lance couldn’t dodge in time. Shiro’s tail made solid contact with Lance’s chest, sending him flying.  
“Lance!”  
Lance hit a tree, dropping to the ground. He didn’t move.  
“Lance!”  
Shiro was baring down on Lance, mouth opening. Keith forced himself to his feet, groaning in pain. He staggered slightly before sprinting towards Lance, throwing himself between Shiro and the other man.  
“No!” he shouted, “Pease Shiro! Stop! You don’t want to do this! Please! Stop!”  
Shiro froze, teeth still bared, eyes locked on Keith’s battered and bloody form.  
“Move!” the guardian screeched, “You cannot stop this.”  
“Shiro,” Keith called out softly.  
Opening his mouth, Shiro roared.

The dragon’s head snapped to the side, grabbing the guardian where she was hovering not all that far away. She screeched but couldn’t do anything, Shrio’s dragon magic nullifying her own. He shook his head from side to side, until snapping his head and opening his mouth. She was sent flying. He turned back, eyes once again returned to their usual grey. Keith breathed out a side of relief, before he remembered Lance.

The adrenaline was starting to wear off, the pain from his shoulder and face making themselves known. Turning around, Keith rested his hand on Lance’s chest, breathing out a sigh of relief when he felt it rise and fall.  
“He’s breathing,” Keith sighed in relief, “We need to move.”  
Shiro rumbled, crouching down. Keith gathered Lance’s unconscious form in his arms, groaning in pain as it pulled on his injured shoulder. He didn’t know where they could go, neither him nor Shiro knew anywhere they could go to get medical attention. He settled the two of them down on Shiro’s back, curling his arm protectively around Lance.

The sound of hooves caught both their attention, Keith snapped his head to one side. A familiar horse trotted out of the forest, coat gleaming unnaturally white in the sunlight. This was Lance’s horse Blue, who he’d once spent an entire afternoon talking about. He adored her, but as Keith looked, there was something a bit off about her. She snorted and tossed her head and for a second, Keith could’ve sworn his saw a horn protruding from her forehead.   
“Do you know where we can get help?” Keith asked.  
He was talking to a horse, not the strangest or craziest thing that had happened today. Blue tossed her head, turning to trot back into the forest. She paused, turning back to look at them.  
“Follow the horse? I guess?” Keith said.  
Shiro snorted, bobbing his head and spreading his wings.

There was a lot of blood, most of it Keith’s, but there was a small trail oozing from Lance’s hairline. Blue was not a normal horse, she was going way too fast for that. It was a bit cold up in the air, Keith shivered and clutched Lance closer. Keith was starting to feel a bit dizzy. His shoulder really hurt. Was Lance’s breathing a bit odd. Blue whinnied from below them. Shiro started to descend, black spots were dancing in front of his eyes. There was a bump as they landed, Keith slipped off Shiro’s back, Lance in his arms. There were several shouts.  
“Help,” Keith said, before everything went black.

****

Keith prodded lightly at the new scar adorning his cheek, humming thoughtfully. He didn’t mind the new scars adorning his skin, they reminded him of his new freedom.  
“Keith! Get your ass down here! Dinner,” Lance yelled from downstairs.  
 With a light smile and an eyeroll, Keith pulled on his shirt. The wooden stairs in the small cottage creaked slightly as he made his way down them, he smiled at the sound of many voices in the kitchen.

Blue had led the two of them to Lance’s travelling companions, Hunk and Pidge, they in turn had taken them to the elf-witch Allura. They were now all staying with her until Lance and Keith fully recovered. The cottage was way too small for the six of them, it was always way too crowded, especially at dinners when they were joined by Allura’s uncle Coran. It could be a bit overwhelming at times, but Keith liked it, he was sick of being alone.

Keith was squished between Lance and Shiro, the former kept ‘accidentally’ knocking elbows with him as he gestured wildly. Allura and Pidge were howling with laughter, Hunk rolled his eyes as he brought over a big dish to rest on the table.   
“Alright everyone, dig in!” he called over everyone’s voices.   
A cheer rose up from the table as everyone began to dig in. According to his guardians, Keith was served only the best and most expensive foods while he was in the tower. Hunk’s cooking was easily a million times better.

“Right! I’m going to go check on Blue!” Lance announced as dinner finished.  
“You just don’t want to do the dishes!” Pidge shouted.  
“No! I would never!” Lance laughed, standing up.  
“Check on Yellow and Green while you’re at it!” Hunk said, poking him in the arm.   
“Yeah yeah,” Lance said, wriggling out of his place squished at the table.   
“Take them out!” Pidge said, “Green’s getting restless.”  
“Ok,” Lance said, rolling his eyes, “I know how to take care of them guys.”  
Keith jumped slightly as warm hands rested on his shoulders, Lance lent down to press a kiss to his cheek. Pidge made a gagging sound, Hunk awed. Lance flipped them off on the way out, causing them both to laugh.

It was getting late and Lance hadn’t returned yet, they weren’t worried. This village was rally safe and he could handle himself, but Keith went out to look for him anyway. He was most likely at the waterfall just outside the village, his suspicions were confirmed when there was a greeting whinny.   
“Hey Green,” Keith said, reaching out to pet her nose.  
None of the horses were actually normal horses, but that only showed in moonlight. Green tossed her mane, flowers and leaves tumbling to the ground. Keith continued forwards, following the sound of the waterfall.

Blue reared up and neighed from her place stood on the surface of the water in the centre of the pool. Lance turned from his place perched on the edge, smiling brightly as Keith made his way over.  
“Hey,” he said lightly, reaching out his hand.  
Keith felt his face warm up, but smiled as he took Lance’s hand and sat beside him.  
“Hi,” Keith replied.  
They both watched Blue canter around on the surface of the lake, glowing in the moonlight, flicking her lion-like tail. Yellow was stood on the other side, stomping her rocky hooves and whinnying brightly at Blue.

“We’re thinking of maybe setting off tomorrow, well, after buying some more supplies,” Lance said softly, “If you still want to come with us?”  
“Why would I not want to come with you?” Keith asked, tilting his head to one side.  
“Well, you’re free now, you can go wherever you want, you could say here, you could travel on your own or with Shiro,” Lance said, smiling, “You have a choice now.”  
“But I want to travel with you, with all of you,” Keith said, squeezing Lance’s hand, “I don’t want to be alone again.”  
Lance smiled, a little sadly, making Keith frown.  
“I was only the first guy you saw Keith, you don’t have to stick with me, you could find someone else,” Lance said.  
Keith frowned, leaning over. He pressed their lips together, before leaning down to nuzzle in the joint of his neck and shoulder.   
“Why would I want someone else when it’s you I love,” Keith mumbled softly.  
Lance’s eyes widened, he looked away chewing his cheek in embarrassment. Keith pressed their lips together again and again and again, Lance giggled as Keith began pressing kisses all over his face.  
“I love you,” Keith said between kisses, “I…Love…You.”

The two of them lay sprawled out on the grass, Lance was splayed out on his back, Keith snuggled in too his side. Keith’s eyes were closed, his face buried in Lance’s neck. Keith couldn’t help the smile on his face, he was so damn happy.  
“We need to get you a horse,” Lance said, “It can’t just be any old horse though.”  
Keith’s smile shifted to more of a smirk, he cuddled slightly closer. He’d read something interesting the other day, about the active volcano not too far away. It was a crazy, insane idea, but it was those sorts of ideas that got him here in the first place.  
“I have an idea,” he said, pressing a kiss to the warm skin right next to his face.  
“Oh god,” Lance laughed, “Why do I have a bad feeling about this.”  
Keith grinned, moving to lean over him. Lance snorted, tapping Keith lightly on the nose.   
“Come on, you said you wanted to see the world,” Keith said.  
Lance groaned, pulling Keith down to koala him in his limbs.  
“I did.”  
“Well then,” Keith said, muffled by Lance’s chest, “Let’s do it, take me to see the world.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it, that's the end of this fic, I hoped you enjoy it. Whether or not there is going to be a sequel with them travelling the world is still up in the air, I might write one...I might not. Just in case you were confused, Keith is able to see through the magic that disguises Blue, Yellow and Green without moonlight.
> 
> So anyway, comments and kudos always appreciated, thanks for reading.

**Author's Note:**

> Ok, so this is the full fic of [this](https://whitehorsetiger.tumblr.com/post/176405024905/locked-away) that I posted a few weeks ago. I don't really have much more to say about it...I guess its sort of based off Rapunzel but not really...I don't know...
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed...comments and kudos are always appreciated, thanks.


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